It is only natural for eyes of both the young and the old to turn toward the sky in December in hopes of catching a glimpse of jolly old St. Nick. But the long, crisp nights of winter also make for superb observing of the cosmos. So when not looking for a sleigh and eight tiny reindeer, take a moment to look for other celestial presents.

In the Western sky after sunset, there are four bright stars that give us the asterism (connect-the-dot picture) called The Great Square, which also represents the body of the constellation (area of the sky) of Pegasus. The winged horse appears to be flying upside-down in the sky with his neck and head coming off the Southwestern star of the Great Square.

Rising in the East just a few hours after sunset is the famous constellation of Orion the Hunter. We begin by looking for the three bright stars that give us his bronze belt. A complete hourglass asterism centered on his belt is imagined by finding the four corner stars. The Southwestern star of this hourglass is called Rigel, and the Northeastern star is called Betelgeuse.

How about a planet challenge? Consider the following:

In the glow of twilight as the sun sets we find the bright glow of Venus.

Rising just after Orion, northeast of Betelgeuse, is the mighty gas-giant planet Jupiter.

Rising a little after 2 a.m. is the Red Planet Mars.

The ring world of Saturn rises in the east about 5:30 a.m.

The innermost planet, Mercury, can be found rising just before the sun, although toward the end of December it will get lost in the sun’s glare.

That’s right: All five visible planets can be seen throughout the night this month. What a great opportunity to commune with the cosmos and take wonder at the many other worlds that exist in our solar system — and in the universe as a whole.

In this photo provided by NASA, the tail of Comet ISON is visible in this three-minute exposure taken on Nov. 19 at 6:10 a.m., using a 14-inch telescope located at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The comet was just nine days away from its close encounter with the sun. But when they did have that encounter, the comet lost, and it was reduced to a faint and diffuse cloud.

In this photo provided by NASA, Comet ISON shines brightly in this image taken on the morning of Nov. 19, 2013. This is a 10-second exposure taken with the Marshall Space Flight Center 20" telescope in New Mexico. The comet will pass closest to the sun on Nov. 28, 2013. The camera there is black and white, but the smaller field of view allows for a better "zoom in" on the comet's coma, which is essentially the head of the comet. (AP Photo/NASA, Cameron McCarty)

Thanksgiving has come and gone and the Holiday Season is officially here. Retailers have been programming us for this reality since the middle of October, using straightforward, but subtle, capitalistic logic:

There is a Holiday Season in 2013;

It is currently 2013;

Stores are open;

You don’t need a savings account.

Good grief!

Besides the dried-up stuffing and solidified gravy found in refrigerators all over America, there is another Thanksgiving leftover. This particular treat is not from the kitchen, but from the far reaches of our solar system.

In September 2012, a Russian observatory discovered a new comet. This facility is part of a system of nearly 30 telescopes spread among 10 countries, collectively called the International Scientific Optical Network (ISON).

Managed by the Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics, part of the Russian Academy of Sciences, this global initiative detects, monitors and tracks objects in space.

Although originally cataloged as C/2012 S1, professional and amateur astronomers alike soon began to simply call this newly discovered comet “ISON” in honor of the cooperative organization that found it.

As more was learned about the nature and trajectory of Comet ISON, there was a growing sense of optimism that it could be the “Comet of the Century” and be as bright as a full moon with a tail that could span more than half the sky. Universities, colleges, schools, museums and astronomy clubs prepared for this potential once-in-a-lifetime event.

Nature, it would seem, had other plans for Comet ISON. But first, some science:

Comets are best thought of as “dirty snowballs” — chunks of frozen gases and water mixed with dust and debris they have collected on their vast journeys. Most have very elongated orbits, spending most of their time far from the sun. However, when comets do enter the inner solar system, heat from the sun vaporizes some of the ice and the solar wind pushes the released gases and dust outward, forming a tail.

Comets are not only ambassadors from the width and breadth of our cosmic neighborhood, but they also tell us stories about our past. These vagabonds are leftovers from the formation of our solar system 5 billion years ago and contain primordial materials. Studying comets gives astronomers a better understanding of how the planets came into being.

Even before approaching the sun, Comet ISON was impressive, measuring in at over 3 miles wide. Hope grew that this great cosmic interloper would put on a spectacular show in December after it swept around the sun. Indeed, Comet ISON was visible just before sunrise in November.

So what happened?

On Nov. 28 — Thanksgiving — Comet ISON’s orbit carried it around the sun. It had a very close encounter, passing 730,000 miles above the sun’s surface. While most people were desperately trying to down one last bite of mashed potatoes before heading out to do some mob shopping, skywatchers all over the world waited eagerly to see what would emerge from the other side of the sun.

Reports came in quickly — too quickly, in my opinion. In their haste to report something — anything — many agencies did not wait for data to come in and a complete analysis to be done. There were contradictory and back-and-forth stories flooding the Internet.

The grim reality of Comet ISON’s fate was revealed on Nov. 30. All that remains of this once great giant is a faint and diffuse cloud, almost imperceptible to the human eye. In its contest with the sun, Comet ISON lost.

The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft actually was able to track and image Comet ISON as it grew dimmer and dimmer.

“I do think something emerged from the sun, but probably a very small nucleus or ‘rubble pile,’ and I fear that may have now dissolved,” said Karl Battams, an astrophysicist at the Naval Research Laboratory.

Was Comet ISON a complete bust? Absolutely not! As Battams said:

“Over the past year, we’ve amassed what we believe to be the largest single cometary database in history from one of, if not the most, successful coordinated observing campaigns in history.”

So Comet ISON fizzled and dissolved away as it rounded the sun, much like the Alka-Seltzer that was being consumed by the barrelful to aid in our Thanksgiving post-consumption state. And while casual observers may have been deprived of a spectacular cosmic show, scientists were given a great gift: the opportunity to study a pristine comet from the edge of the solar system as it made its first, and only, trip around the sun.

And that is more valuable than any bauble purchased on sale during Black Friday.